Chew for cheer. Just a tablet in mouth will do the trick

Anything for that morning cup of tea! Say that again. The cup is likely to be replaced by a pill. That is if the Tocklai Experimental Station at Jorhat has its way. In a pioneering move, the oldest and the largest research station of its kind, synonymous with tea research, has developed a tiny tea tablet that can be chewed as well as stirred in a cup of water. Made from natural extracts, fresh from tea gardens of Assam, it will be just as invigorating as a regular cup of tea that brings cheer.

The health benefits of a cup of tea have been driven home time and again and it has been rated as the best beverage, even better than water. Researches have proved its role in cancer prevention, improved cardiovascular health and in arresting tooth decay. Green tea benefits are manifold, some anti-oxidental. It not only cuts off risks of dying from heart diseases and strokes but also deaths from many other ailments. Green tea improves metabolism and fights fat too. Now, Indian scientists have given the much-loved health drink a new avatar. Perhaps it will give a fillip to the Indian tea industry too, which has seen a decline in exports recently. The health industry can enter into a joint venture with the tea industry. Tea can be bought like candy, chocolates and chewing gum all from the same counter. How the “chaiwala” at the street corner will take remains to be seen.
But the history of tea in India, whose consumption finds mention even in ancient texts, may or may not be rewritten with the new tea pill , or whatever the brand name it may come to acquire. But for those who decide to beat the chill with the pill, the fine art of tea making may well be history. Will the world’s largest tea drinking nation no longer wake up to that morning cup of tea? Time to mull over a cup of tea… nay a pill in your mouth. Out with teatime.…. reserve your sympathy for those exquisite tea pots. At 80 paise per tablet — commercial production will bring down the cost even further — it is time to pop the pill and chew your thoughts.

Source: The Tribune, Chandigarh, India.

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